First brisket... advice?


 
Andrew Binkard

Andrew Binkard

New member
So I'm smoking my first brisket on a Weber kettle. I'm doing the Minion method on Kingsford blue and using hickory chunks for smoke flavor. I rubbed with salt and pepper a la Aaron Franklin. I've got a water pan going, which seems to be catching its fair share of drippings. I've had the kettle steady at 250-275 for five hours now, and here's a picture I snapped about half an hour ago as I turned the brisket:

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The internal temperature has been stalled out at 150 for about 30-40 minutes now... when should I expect it to start getting hotter? The kettle was down to 230, so I added a few more fresh coals, a lump of hickory, and opened the top vents a little so it's back up around 255-260. Really hoping this turns out OK. Look good so far?
 
Looks good. Don't panic it will go up in temp before you know it. I can't tell you a time because I never actually timed a stall before.
 
Hi Andrew,

That brisket is looking good.
This cook will take some time, although an exact times doesn't matter since BBQ is done with it's done (ie tender). Some say BBQ is an great time to practice patience. ;)
Suggest not watching the temperature too closely. When it get around 185, start checking for tenderness using a probe. When all of it test like soft butter, pull it. But not before tenderness has been reached !
Should be a wonderful brisket !!!

Looking forward to some super delicious brisket photos !

Bob
 
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It can take a couple hours in the stall. Do yourself a favour and quit worrying about temps. The most common problem people have with brisket is not cooking it long enough. Cook it till probe tender. Your looking at 1-11/2 hrs per pound normally.
 
So will it feel tough before it feels tender? I took it off at around 170 to wrap it to get it the rest of the way... However now the temp in the kettle is spiking and the brisket lost about 5-10 degrees during wrapping.
 
Yes it will feel tough when probing if it is not done enough. Probe should go in with little resistance like into warm butter. Make sure you let it rest for 30 minutes on the counter before slicing. Once foiled the temp will go up quicker.
 
It turned out... OK. I wasn't super disappointed as it was only the first one I've ever done. The flat was somewhat dry. There was still moisture coming out when squeezed, but it was a little tough. The point was much better. I think I may have cooked too hot... I averaged about 265-280 for most of the cook. Coupled with the fact that I'm on a kettle and the brisket was closer to the coals/wood than on a WSM, that may have contributed to the toughness. I pulled it off after 7.5 hours when the internal read 179, wrapped in foil, then gave it another 2 hours till it got up to 190. I did let it rest for about 40 minutes. Anyway, here are a couple pictures...

I accidentally knocked a piece of bark off. One of my greyhounds snapped that up off the floor QUICK.
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The flat.
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The point.
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Thanks y'all for the advice! Can't wait to get back on the horse and try again.
 
Dry and tough means not cooked long enough. I'm a rare to medium rare beef kind of guy and it took me awhile before I could actually convince myself that I had to cook a brisket longer to get it to be tender and juicy. The point was moist because it has much more fat in it so more rendered. Forget cooking by temps. Most guys cook their brisket anywhere between 185-205 but probe for tender to make sure it's done. I think your better off going by feel and forgetting temps all together( except keep track of your pit temp ). If you have some left you can turn it into burnt ends quite easily.
 
I did a brisket about three weeks ago that I was really proud of. It was the first one that I ever felt came out perfect. Moist everywhere, and excellent flavor and tenderness. It fed about 10 people, and absolutely blew their socks off. Some cliff notes that were a bit different than what you did that may make a difference, and general comments:

- I foiled mine at about 160. About the same time I needed to add more coals, so the temp in the cooker fell a bit, and the meat lost a degree or two before it started climbing again. This was just after I had gotten through an almost two hour stall. Patience is a virtue. :)
- I took it off around 190, and it wasn't QUITE done yet. I think it would have been pretty decent, but I put it back in and ended up taking it off at 196 when I felt the meat was ready. A fork went in with very minimal effort.
- I still had about 75 minutes until I was ready to slice it, so I wrapped the (still foiled) brisket in a towel and put it in an empty cooler (they don't just keep things cold, they also keep things warm!) until I was ready. I've done this a few times now with larger meats, and I believe it helps out quite a bit.
- Yours looks fine, but I caked on the rub a lot more than normal on this one. It built the bark up really nicely.

Once i sliced, it was amazing. Even the leftovers two days later reheated in the microwave for brisket sandwiches were still moist and excellent.

Good luck on the second attempt! I hope this helped!
 
Andrew,

Very nice looking brisket. Wished you had cooked it longer. I agree 100% with Bob Sample's assessment. Furthermore, I do not believe the temperature you were running had any negative effect on the brisket. Heck, that's a good temperature range.

The brisket will be done when IT want to.
No matter how many ways you try to change that, the brisket has the final word !

Bob
 
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